What’s going on in Syria? New regime intercepts Hezbollah weapons; IDF builds new base in Syrian Golan

After the drama of the Assad regime’s collapse drew the eyes of the whole world toward Syria, the last weeks have seen a sharp decrease of media attention toward the country, as the new government is working to assert its control while starting the rebuilding process.

On Sunday, the Interior Ministry of Syria’s new government, which is dominated by the Islamist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group, announced its forces had caught a shipment of weapons intended for Hezbollah.

The Lebanese terror group Hezbollah was among the Assad regime’s most important allies and is a sworn enemy of the former rebel groups, including HTS. The fall of the Assad regime deprived Hezbollah of most of its critically important land routes connecting it to its patron and main backer, Iran.

The shipment was intercepted on one of the numerous smuggling routes crisscrossing the border region between Syria and Lebanon, near the town of Serghaya, north of the capital Damascus, The Media Line reported.

Another weapons shipment was intercepted last week in the Tartous province, near Lebanon’s northern border. Pictures released by Syria’s General Security Directorate showed the shipment contained sniper rifles, machine guns, AK-47 rifles, grenade launchers, and missiles.

Among the new government’s most important projects is international recognition, which will help with the lifting the many sanctions imposed on the country due to the Assad regime’s crimes during the Civil War.

In an important signal to the region, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan visited the country on Friday, for the first time meeting with HTS chief and the country’s de-facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, as well as Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani.

On Monday, EU foreign ministers agreed on a roadmap to gradually lift European sanctions on Syria.

“This could give a boost to the Syrian economy and help the country get back on its feet,” EU head diplomat Kaja Kallas said, but cautioned that “while we aim to move fast, the lifting of sanctions can be reversed if wrong steps are taken.”

On Syria’s southwestern border, the IDF has long prepared for potential “wrong steps” by the new government, immediately seizing the demilitarized zone on the Golan Heights when the Assad regime collapsed and left it unsecured.

After Israeli officials announced the IDF would stay there at least through the winter, the BBC published recent satellite images showing a street leading to the Israeli military’s newly built outpost, some 600 meters inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on Syrian territory.

The report included satellite images showing small prefabricated structures in a buffer zone.

Yet @BBC provided no coordinates & overlooked key details about the region’s recent history. pic.twitter.com/GfgwTP1FJZ

— CAMERAorg (@CAMERAorg) January 28, 2025

According to CAMERA UK, the BBC’s report contained inaccuracies and omissions.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Tuesday published several pictures and video footage of its infrastructure works across the rugged and mountainous Syrian border region, which it said are part of a logistical effort to provide equipment “for the forces to remain in stormy weather conditions, uniquely suited to the extreme weather conditions in the area.”

The infrastructure and equipment “can withstand various weather conditions, including temporary buildings with an additional layer of insulation, heating equipment, generators, and a water heating system,” and included “a unique medical building for treating injuries from the cold, equipped with appropriate medical equipment, kitchens and a dining room that will enable the provision of hot food to fighters.”

In addition, soldiers were provided with “unique equipment for snow conditions,” like heating bags, raincoats, storm suits, and winter boots, the IDF said.

After several initial reports about the IDF’s advance and some confrontations with the residents of the villages in the new buffer zone, there have been few reports of further conflict in the area.

However, the Syrian outlet Enab Baladi reported that two civilians were lightly wounded by IDF fire while they gathered firewood near the town of Kudneh, where the IDF took over an old Syrian Army post.

One of the civilians was allegedly detained and taken in for questioning, according to the report.